October 2012 News Headlines

Note. All links to news items are to external websites

Win eventing DVDs
Answer a simple question on the British Eventing website and you could win 2 DVDs - A Decade of Badminton and Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event 2012. Competition closes on 30th November 2012.

Racehorse Kauto Star retires
Trainer Paul Nicholls has announced that the record-breaking 12-year-old chaser, Kauto Star, will not race again. Kauto Star won won 16 Grade One races and is the only horse to have regained the Cheltenham Gold Cup after having lost it (winning in 2007 and 2009). He has also won the King George VI Chase 5 times.

Andrew Nicholson wins Pau CCI****
With less than a fence between the top 4 riders going into the final phase, New Zealander Andrew Nicholson jumped clear on Nereo to win the final competition of the European 2012 eventing season. Best placed Brit was William Fox-Pitt in 4th and 5th place.

Welsh Cobs break auction records
At an auction last weekend 3 Welsh cobs set successive world record prices. Colt foal Thorneyside Royal Command first broke the record, selling for £16,000, followed by Thorneyside Welsh Magic selling for £20,000 and finally 2 year old colt Thorneyside Golden Boy sold for £22,000.

Owners and rider of dressage star Totilas face PETA complaint
Since being sold to Germany, dressage stallion Totilas has failed to reach the heights achieved with former rider by Edward Gal. The German branch of PETA has issued a complaint against the new owners and rider that he is being treated unethically and in violation of German animal welfare laws.

Want to know your horse's true personality?
'Like' insurers PetPlan Equine Facebook page and you can take a quiz to test your horse's personality. The quiz was designed by equine behaviourist Michael Peace and can help you discover more about your horse or pony so you build a better relationship, built on trust.

Frankel retires from the track unbeaten
Frankel won The Champion Stakes at Ascot to bring his total wins to 14 out of 14 races. He will now retire to stud where he will command stud fees of £100,000. Frankel, sired by Derby winner Galileo, is being hailed the greatest racehorse of all time and is valued at £100m - a record for a thoroughbred.

Quainton Stud faces planning problems
Quainton Stud, which shares ownership with Ben Maher of the Olympic gold medal winnning showjumper Tripple X, has been told to submit a planning application to allow them to continue holding public events at the stud in Buckinghamshire. Owner, Mrs Phillips, accuses a local councillor of holding a vendetta against the stud.

Champion showjumping pony Colton Maelstrom put down aged 25
Colton Maelstrom was thoroughbred who didn't grow and became an outstanding showjumping pony. She was a member of 12 consecutive European Championships teams, winning 11 gold medals with 5 different riders. Colton Maelstrom's last championship was in 2005 with William Whitaker.

Hand walking yearlings is good preparation for training
Researchers in New Zealand followed 114 thoroughbreds in their preparation for yearling sales and subsequent training as two-year-olds. They found that yearlings who had more hand-walking before the sales were less likely to have interruptions to the training. Shin soreness was the most common reason for an interruption.

Stolen pony reunited with owner
From a story in the local paper, Shirley Phillips realised that a pony rescued by the RSPCA was the pony stolen from her in field in Kent in July. The pony suffering from untreated legs wounds and strangles when found. The pony was returned to Shirley after treatment but her foal and another mare also stolen are still missing.

Equine author gets life ban for horse neglect
Prolific equestrian author, Lesley Skipper, and her husband Mike have been banned from keeping horses for life following an RSPCA investigation. Their horses were found to be badly neglected and kept in squalid conditions. Three horses were put down and the fourth is in the care of the RSPCA.

Do new-born foals benefit from handling?
There is much debate about the extent to which new born foals should be handled, if at all. Two French studies appear to show that early handling (especially bring the foal to the teat) is not beneficial, and that the most effective way of getting foals to accept humans is to groom the dam for 15 minutes a day for the first 5 days..

Many owners not worming correctly, according to survey
A survey of owners' worming methods has shown that only 50% worm effectively for encysted small redworm. The main reason is that many owners believe these are detected by a fecal worm count, which is not the case. Horses should be treated against encysted small redworm with an appropriate wormer in late autumn or winter.

Early lameness detection
A motion detection system, developed at the University of Missouri, has been shown to detect lameness more accurately than the human eye. Sensors are placed on the horse so that it's motion in trot can be compared to normal motion. The earlier lameness can be detected, the better chance there is of recovery.

Imprint Equine Foot Care at Redwings Sanctuary
A vet and 10 farriers attended a course run by Imprint Equine Foot Care held at Redwings' HQ. Some of the Sanctuary's horses were used to demonstrate the fitting of Imprint's Sports Shoe - a nail-less plastic shoe designed to mould itself around the horse's hoof. It helps horses with poor hoof conformation or lameness issues.

Saddle slip may indicate lameness
Saddle slip can have many causes, including rider position and the shape of the back. However, a study by the Animal Health Trust in Newmarket has shown that 'saddle slip occurs in a high percent of the horses with hind limb lameness, and may actually be an indicator of subtle or low grade hind-limb lameness.

Eventer Apache Sauce put down
Apache Sauce, who used to be ridden at 4 star level by Mary King, has been put down today after being injured at Weston Park Horse Trials. Aged 16, he had been ridden since May by Mary's daughter Emily, achieving three top-10 placings with her. His best result with Mary was 4th at Burghley in 2008.

Horse in Cornwall has swamp fever
The highly contagious disease, equine infectious anaemia (EIA or swamp fever), has been found in a horse in Cornwall. Although a serious disease, it can be contained by preventing infected horses from infecting others (by euthanasia). The disease is passed between horses by biting insects. In-contact horses have been quarantined.

Snakes may play role in deadly disease
Eastern Equine Encephalomyelitis Virus (EEEV), a lethal mosquito-borne virus which affects horses and humans, is endemic in America. A new study may explain how the virus survives harsh winters - it shows that snakes can carry the live virus through the winter. A strategy can now be developed to try to control the disease.

BHS Sefton Awards for safety
Three people were recognised at The British Horse Society's Sefton Awards, held at the Household Cavalry Barracks in London, for their outstanding contribution to safety: Nicki Whittaker and Graeme Baxter for setting up training on safely transporting horses; and Shirley Nixon for promoting safer driving around horses.